Photo above is property of The Deadbolt Mystery Society
Company: The Deadbolt Mystery Society
Game: Lost on the Yellow Brick Road
Country: USA 🇺🇸
Language: English
Type of Game: Tabletop Game 📬
Genre: Mystery
Date Played: January 10, 2024
Difficulty (based on 2 players): 6/10
Size of Team: Unlimited (Recommended 1 to 6 ppl)
Time: Unlimited (Recommended 2.5 - 3 Hrs)
Price: $36.99 USD
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At the Will Street Detective Agency, a distressed woman named Laura Baumgartner appears, pleading for help in finding her missing daughter, Judy. Laura recounts a troubling voicemail from Judy referencing a "yellow brick road"; and a cryptic coin, suggesting she's in danger. Intrigued by the mention of "Oz" and rumors of an underground society in the city's abandoned subway tunnels, you decide to take the case. Accepting the unusual coin and trinkets, you embark on a quest to unravel the mystery and locate Judy, knowing she's likely caught up in a perilous situation beneath the city streets.
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Opening the box, we discovered a coin and some trinkets, some papers printed on quality stock, some with QR codes. There were also some hefty and packed envelopes marked with instructions to not open until told to do so.
Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
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We started the game by diving into the articulated “Beginning Brief” that introduced the story to us. The end of the brief clued us on what we should begin to look at and that started us off. For those who are new to DMS, how the game progresses is once you solve the puzzles or believe you know key information, you will scan QR codes and use that information as the password. If you are right, the document will open and continue the story or tell you more information.
The story had more depth than usual with some surprising twists along the way, making this feel more like an action movie. DMS did there research as there were lots of fun easter eggs, references and interesting facts about The Wizard of Oz. The graphic design of the documents helped us feel more involved in the story. There were times when we could picture ourselves in the locations. The game box says that the time it takes to play through the game is 2.5 to 3 hours but we feel that more experienced players could complete it in 1.5 hours.
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The puzzles were entertaining to go through and ramped up pleasantly. There were some matching puzzles, word puzzles and some deduction along the way. The puzzles were clued well and blended into the game smoothly. One thing we noticed was that this DMS game had a few more tangible items than some of their previous games, which allowed them to get a little more creative in their puzzles. Our only complaint there was that some of the items were left in their original packaging, slightly detracting from the overall immersion. The hints document seemed more refined than their previous games with nicer formatting and more tiers leading up
to the solution, which was found on a separate document.
Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
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"Lost on the Yellow Brick Road" was a polished and engaging experience. The story telling was exceptional and immersively written. The puzzles also flowed smoothly, never having frustrating stalls or overstaying their welcome. A mistake we always make is to assume that with such a small box, there isn’t much content but after we start to spread things out and work on stuff, we always wish we had a larger workspace. We played with 2 people but there is enough content that this could be played with 4 people. Any fans of the Wizard of Oz or any armchair detective would enjoy this game. If you are looking for an experience that will take you out of Kansas, this is one that for sure will.
(If you do decide to try this game, give us a shoutout or tag us on social media so we know you heard it from "ESCAPETHEROOMers"!)
Disclosure: We thank The Deadbolt Mystery Society for providing us with samples of the game. Although a complimentary experience was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.
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